A roundup of the best music festivals happening in London this year — from the start of spring till the last rays of summer sunshine.
BRICK LANE EASTER BLOCK PARTY: DJ Storm, Maurice Fulton, Emerald, Vandorta and guests keep this tight crowd of 800 max pumped up for a 10-hour dance music marathon in Brick Lane. Festival season is go. 8 April
IN THE ROUND FESTIVAL: Surround yourself with music, quite literally, with In The Round Festival, at — where else — Roundhouse. A collection of one-off gigs, rather than a full-on fest, this year's lineup including Leroy Hutson and His Magic Makers, Sona Jobarteh and Laura Veirs. 14-25 April
LA LINEA: Bring some Latin colour into your spring, with La Linea; top acts, including Latin Grammy winning Peruvian singer Susana Baca, and Emicida — recently hailed by The Guardian as "one of Brazil’s most influential cultural figures" — pop up at venues across the city, including the Jazz Cafe, Rich Mix and Barbican. 21 April-7 May
BRIXTON DISCO FESTIVAL: A disco festival in the venues around Brixton's Windrush Square. What else could you possibly need to know? Well. There's a rooftop party. You can groove to performances from House Gospel Choir, Dimitri From Paris, and Crazy P Soundsystem. There are film screenings, talks... OK, there was a lot of other stuff you needed to know. 29 April
QUEEN'S YARD SUMMER PARTY: Various venues around Hackney Wick come alive with the sounds of house, techno and disco, pumped out by a slew of names inc. Aletha, Jay Carder, Joi La Frique, DJ Perception plus many others. Warehouses. Ticker tape explosions. Canal-side drinking. Good times. 29 April
GYPSY JAZZ FESTIVAL OF LONDON: This mini festival debuted last year, and returns in style with four nights in four fab east London venues. Jazz guitarist Olli Soikkeli and his quartet at Vortex Jazz Club, and the incorrigibly foot-stomping Raka Balkan Band at Jago Dalston feature. 4-7 May
GALA: Get the (third) May bank holiday off to an early start at GALA in Peckham Rye Park — a party featuring house, techno, jungle, drum 'n' bass, jazz, disco... it goes on. Headliners include Jordan Rakei, Kerri Chandler and Overmono. 26-28 May
SLAM DUNK FESTIVAL: After a slam dunk success last year, the UK's biggest independent rock festival, Slam Dunk, is back at Hatfield Park, just outside London. Don your ankle-length shorts and mosh to a stacked lineup feat. The Offspring, Bowling for Soup and Less than Jake. Ah, it's 2000 all over. 27 May
WIDE AWAKE: Wide Awake festival is an orgy of left-fielders from the worlds of indie, post-punk, and techno. Headliners at this hip Brockwell Park gathering include Caroline Polachek, Osees, Oneohtrix Point Never, Daniel Avery and Warmduscher (who surely have one of the songs of the year, in Love Strong). 27 May
CROSS THE TRACKS: Funk, jazz and classic soul collide at Cross The Tracks Festival in Brockwell Park, with 2023's headliners including Kelis, NxWorries, Masego and Ezra Collective. 28 May
CITY SPLASH: Also at Brockwell Park: a crossover between British, Caribbean and African cultures, with City Splash — embracing reggae, dancehall, and Afrobeat this spring, jampacking 60+ artists across seven stages. Chronixx, Koffee, Shenseea and Skillibeng are playing. 29 May
MIGHTY HOOPLA: Is pop music cool? Who gives a damn when you're having the time of your life? That's the vibe at Mighty Hoopla, an unabashedly glittery festival, this year counting Kelly Rowland, Years & Years, Róisín Murphy and Aqua (!) among their 2023 Brockwell Park lineup. 2-4 June
HAMPTON COURT PALACE FESTIVAL: Want a taste of pop royalty? Hampton Court Palace Festival's two-week shindig is back this June, ready to welcome you with a glass of champagne and space for a picnic before performances from Grace Jones, Kaiser Chiefs, Björn Again and Rick Astley. 8-17 June
MELTDOWN: Christine and the Queens step up to curate Southbank Centre's annual Meltdown Festival; the French musical phenomenon have handpicked acts including Warpaint, Bat For Lashes and — one of 2022's hottest acts — Let's Eat Grandma. 9-18 June
BST HYDE PARK: Starting late June, BST Hyde Park has a free-to-enter weekly programming of live music, arts, film, and workshops. But the festival-style weekend shows are where it's really at, and some big names — including Bruce Springsteen — have already sold out. At time of writing, there's still availability for Blackpink, P!nk and Take That. 23 June-8 July
SOMERSET HOUSE SUMMER SERIES: It's two decades since Somerset House first decided to host a festival in its neoclassical courtyard for an unlikely musical shebang. This year, they're going all out with performances from Interpol, Alison Goldfrapp, Beabadoobee (fresh from being support act on Taylor Swift's Eras Tour) and Young Fathers. 6-16 July
WIRELESS: Three-day Wireless Festival swaggers into Finsbury Park again, hitting you left, right and centre with the most on fleek rap and hip hop stars: Yeat, Lil Uzi Vert, Metro Boomin, Ice Spice - and many more. 7-9 July
KEW THE MUSIC: BYOP (bring your own picnic) for Kew The Music, featuring a series of outdoor gigs from Jack Savoretti, The Human League, Hacienda Classical, and others. Refined festival vibes indeed. 11-17 July
FOLK BY THE OAK: Travel a few miles outside London to find yourself at the sylvan Folk by the Oak in Hatfield Park. Embrace music from The Waterboys, Nick Mulvey and This Is The Kit — and participate in creative workshops like pendant making. Sounds like a chill one. 16 July
JUNCTION 2: Many dance music festivals grace London this summer, but Junction 2 stands out thanks to acts like Underworld, Charlotte de Witte, Midland and Dan Shake. The only London festival we're aware of where you party beneath a flyover. 21-22 July
SOUTH FACING FESTIVAL: Crystal Palace Park's 'rusty laptop' flips open to host what is essentially a run of one-off shows from late July till mid August. With acts including Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birdds, James and Craig David, this is one for the traditionalists. 28 July-13 August
51ST STATE: Party in the USA but make it London, as transatlantic festival 51st State returns to Barnet's Copthall Playing Fields this summer — embracing house, garage, R'n'B, disco and soul. Roy Ayres and DJ Jazzy Jeff alone should be enough to lure you in. 5 August
ALL POINTS EAST: Victoria Park is ground zero for London in terms of the city's park-based day festivals, and All Points East continues the tradition with two weekends of supremely curated music. Stormzy is curating and headlining on 18 August — while other acts include Erykah Badu, The Strokes and Yeah Yeah Yeahs. 18-25 August
FIELD DAY: Soundscapes of ambient electronica wash over east London's Victoria Park for this year's edition of Field Day — headlined by the incomparable Aphex Twin, plus plenty of artists lacking some certain letters — think TSHA and SBTRKT. Snds wndrfl. 19 August
HOSPITALITY IN THE WOODS: A blazing midsummer festival made up of "100% drum and bass" will surely startle the citizens of south London, as Hospitality in the Woods descends for one day only on the gorgeous Beckenham Place Park, serving up artists like Roni Size and Netsky. 19 August
WE ARE FSTVL: Urban, bass, house, techno — two days of non-stop bangers are on the cards at We Are FSTVL, with acts inc. DJ Seinfeld and Horse Meat Disco keeping 'em warm for headliners The Prodigy. 25-27 August
EASTERN ELECTRICS: Expect bass. Enough bass to leave your ears thudding for a week after. Performers at this Lee Valley Showground one-dayer include The Martinez Brothers, Artbat, Ben Klock, Denis Sulta and Move D. At time of writing (April) it's already 75% sold out. 26 August
MAIDEN VOYAGE: Lee Valley Showground hasn't had time to catch its breath, before Maiden’s Voyage rocks up, the day after Eastern Electrics. Here's one for the jazz, electronica, and alternative aficionados — with the likes of AceMo, DJ BORING and CASISDEAD. 27 August
PUB IN THE PARK: What do you get if you mix Glastonbury Latitude with Saturday Kitchen? Pub in the Park of course — the roving culinary/music fest that pitches up in Chiswick Park at the start of September. Mainstream artists (McFly, Ronan Keating, Squeeze) provide an easy listening soundtrack to live cookery demos from the likes of Andi Oliver and Tom Kerridge. Tasty stuff if you're of a certain temperament/vintage. 1-3 September
SOUL TOWN: Sister Sledge, UB40 and Mica Paris top the bill at this laid-back two-dayer in Beckenham. You can get tickets for Sat or Sun — or go all in and sign up to both. (Kids are welcome on the Sunday only.) 2-3 September
WATERWORKS: Gunnersbury Park plays host to dance music beano Waterworks, with various stages — Water Tower, Orbit, Cedar — showcasing top notch acts inc. DJ Holographic, Heléna Star, Nick León, Angel D’lite and a ton more. 16 September
Any big ones we've missed? Tell us the comments below or email hello@londonist.com. We'll update this article as more events are announced.
